Stretch Your Mind and Body: Tai Chi as an Adaptive Activity

"Stretch You Mind and Body: Tai Chi as an Adaptive Activity" meets the needs of both individuals who seek to adopt a nontraditional and complementary health activity into their stressful lives and professionals in need of a practical textbook that will enable them to use tai chi as a therapeutic intervention. Many have found that the eastern art of tai chi satisfies health needs in a quiet yet physically active manner. Tai chi has existed for centuries and overwhelming evidence documents the beneficial effects of this physical art. Tai chi is a safe, viable method of exercise shown to have significant positive results in four dimensions of human life: physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual. There are two methods of practice in tai chi: passive and dynamic. The passive method - a gentler, more reflexive and reactive form - will be examined in this book. This text reviews general principles of wellness and physical conditioning and examines how tai chi can be incorporated into a health lifestyle. Stretching and flexibility, warm-up exercises, adaptive versions of the tai chi short form are included. An appendix of assessment tools allows readers to monitor their progress Nearly 300 photographs complement the instructions.